Residential
-
June 03, 2025
Prosecutors Take Second Stab At Convicting Dallas Developer
Federal prosecutors started a second run at convicting a Dallas real estate developer of bribing two city council members, telling a jury during opening arguments Tuesday that the developer had a "silent partnership" with elected officials in exchange for favors.
-
June 03, 2025
2 Texans, Firm Owe $5.3M In SEC House-Flipping Fraud Suit
A pair of Texas men and their investment company must give the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nearly $5.3 million to resolve claims they defrauded investors in a house-flipping scheme, misappropriating $2.9 million and misrepresenting that certain property interests would secure certain investor funds.
-
June 03, 2025
Wash. Judge Clears The Way For Redfin Merger Vote
A Washington federal judge on Tuesday refused to stop Redfin shareholders from voting Wednesday on a $1.75 billion merger with Rocket Cos., finding that with new disclosures made by the company, investors have enough information to make an informed decision.
-
June 03, 2025
Conn. Real Estate Execs Say Investors Weaponized Courts
Three executives for a real estate development firm have accused their former business partners in Connecticut Superior Court of weaponizing the courts to lodge "a multi-year, multi-forum legal assault" with "fabricated" claims.
-
June 03, 2025
Invitation Homes Starts Lending Effort, Buys $100M In Homes
Invitation Homes said it spent more than $100 million to acquire about 300 newly built single-family homes while it launched a developer lending program with a $32.7 million loan to a Houston homebuilder.
-
June 03, 2025
Texas Gives Some Property Owners More Time To Pay Taxes
Some Texas property owners whose taxing authorities allow bills to be paid in two installments will get more time to make their initial payment under legislation signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
-
June 03, 2025
Starwood Capital Raises $2.9B For Private Credit Funds
Starwood Capital Group announced Tuesday that it has closed a series of private credit vehicles focused on the U.S., Europe and Australia after securing a total of $2.86 billion in capital commitments from investors.
-
June 03, 2025
The Law360 400: A Look At The Top 100 Firms
A rebound in client work sent the nation’s largest law firms into growth mode last year, driving a wave of hiring, mergers and strategic moves that reshaped the top tier of the Law360 400. Here's a preview of the 100 firms with the largest U.S. attorney headcounts.
-
June 03, 2025
Text To Sanctions Trial Witness Just An 'Error,' Judge Agrees
A Manhattan federal judge declined on Tuesday to revoke bail for a businessman accused of helping a Russian banker evade sanctions on assets worth nearly $150 million, after his lawyer said his text to a trial witness was merely a phone flub.
-
June 03, 2025
Real Estate Lawyers On The Move
Vedder Price, BakerHostetler and Clifford Chance are among the law firms that have made recent real estate or construction hires.
-
June 02, 2025
Rocket Cos. Board Beats Investor's $500M Insider Trading Suit
Delaware's Court of Chancery on Monday dismissed a derivative shareholder suit accusing Rocket Companies Inc.'s board, chairman and controlling stockholder of breaching their fiduciary duties by liquidating $500 million worth of stock allegedly based on material nonpublic information, saying the plaintiffs have failed to show a motive.
-
June 02, 2025
Budget Bill Would Deepen Residential Solar's Woes
A Sunnova unit's bankruptcy declaration — the latest among dozens of solar companies that have struggled to stay afloat — adds to evidence of a floundering residential solar industry, which now faces further diminishing prospects under the federal budget reconciliation bill.
-
June 02, 2025
Landlord To Quit Pricing Software To Escape Antitrust Suit
William C. Smith & Co. will be stepping out of litigation accusing the company of using property management platform RealPage to conspire with other landlords and fix the price of rentals in the D.C. area, after agreeing to reform its business practices and shell out over $1 million.
-
June 02, 2025
Seattle Owner Questions Insurer's $8.5M Water Damage Denial
A Seattle building owner urged a Washington federal court to grant it a partial early win in a coverage dispute over $8.5 million in water damage, telling the court that under state law, none of the four exclusions its insurer cited when denying coverage are applicable to the water intrusion loss.
-
June 02, 2025
Sacramento County Inks Encampment ADA Settlement
The county of Sacramento and a proposed class of residents with disabilities told a California federal court on Monday they have reached a tentative deal amid a suit alleging the city and county violated various state and federal laws by allowing homeless encampments to block sidewalks.
-
June 02, 2025
Squire Patton Boggs Advises US Land Banking Partnership
Squire Patton Boggs LLP guided Walton Global on a partnership with GoldenTree Asset Management to make investments in lot banking transactions in high-growth U.S. markets.
-
June 02, 2025
Tax Court Cuts $21M Off Former Ga. Quarry's Deduction Value
A donated 85-acre land plot in Georgia originally valued at nearly $22 million should have been valued around $193,000, the U.S. Tax Court found Monday, agreeing with the Internal Revenue Service.
-
June 02, 2025
PG&E, Lenders Hit With Suit Over Solar Panel 'Scheme'
Pacific Gas & Electric Corp. and several other companies were accused in California federal court of running a "bait-and-switch" scheme in which they saddle homeowners with hidden fees after tricking them into financing solar panel installations through zero-interest loans.
-
June 02, 2025
Insurer Not Liable For $8.5M Florida Condo Defect Damages
A Florida federal judge freed an insurer from paying any of the $8.5 million in damages connected to shoddy work at a Florida condo, finding there wasn't an allocation accounting for which claims were covered and which claims were not in an agreement between the condo and a contractor.
-
June 02, 2025
Healthcare REIT Lands $94M In Mortgages For Senior Housing
Diversified Healthcare Trust announced Monday that it closed on two mortgages secured by six properties totaling $94.3 million, which it plans to use to pay down high interest rate senior notes due in June.
-
June 02, 2025
McGuireWoods Guides Bronx Multifamily Portfolio Loan
McGuireWoods LLP advised financing secured by a 2.1 million-square-foot affordable housing portfolio in the Bronx that was acquired last month by Longacre Group from Related Fund Management.
-
June 02, 2025
NYC Real Estate Week In Review
Greenberg Traurig and Schulte Roth are among the law firms that landed work on the largest New York City real estate trades that hit public records last week, with a nine-figure Brooklyn deal topping the list.
-
June 02, 2025
Texas Voters To Decide On Fire-Ruined Homestead Tax Break
Texas voters will decide whether to amend the state's constitution to authorize a temporary property tax exemption for homesteads destroyed by fire under a joint resolution approved by state lawmakers and filed with the secretary of state.
-
May 30, 2025
Rocket Mortgage Class Asks Justices To Scope Decertification
Rocket Mortgage borrowers who saw their class action against the lender decertified have told the U.S. Supreme Court that another pending case before it will resolve the question that undid their own class standing, and their litigation should be put on hold until that case is resolved.
-
May 30, 2025
Feds, AGs Scoff At Landlords' Bid To Toss Antitrust Case
Landlords embroiled in an antitrust suit misconstrued the law and agreements at the heart of the case, the federal government and state enforcers said on Thursday as they urged a North Carolina federal court to reject the landlords' bid to dismiss.
Expert Analysis
-
Assessing The Practicality Of Harris' Affordable Housing Plan
Vice President Kamala Harris' proposed "Build the American Dream" plan to tackle housing affordability issues takes solid recommendations into account and may fare better than California's unsuccessful attempt at a similar program, but the scope of the problem is beyond what a three-point plan can solve, says Brooke Miller at Sheppard Mullin.
-
RealPage Suit Shows Growing Algorithm, AI Pricing Scrutiny
The U.S. Department of Justice's suit against RealPage for helping fix rental rates, filed last week, demonstrates how the use of algorithmic and artificial intelligence tools to assist with pricing decisions is drawing increasing scrutiny and action across government agencies, and specifically at the Federal Trade Commission and the DOJ, say Andre Geverola and Leah Harrell at Arnold & Porter.
-
What To Expect From Evolving Wash. Development Plans
The current round of periodic updates to Washington counties' growth and development plans will need to address new requirements from recent legislation, and will also likely bring changes that should please property owners and developers, says Jami Balint at Seyfarth.
-
Brownfield Questions Surround IRS Tax Credit Bonus
Though the IRS has published guidance regarding the Inflation Reduction Act's 10% adder for tax credits generated by renewable energy projects constructed on brownfield sites, considerable guesswork remains as potential implications seem contrary to IRS intentions, say Megan Caldwell and Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.
-
Bank M&A Continues To Lag Amid Regulatory Ambiguity
Bank M&A activity in the first half of 2024 continued to be lower than in prior years, as the industry is recovering from the 2023 bank failures, and regulatory and macroeconomic conditions have not otherwise been prime for deals, say Robert Azarow and Amber Hay at Arnold & Porter.
-
How High Court Ruling Is Shaping Homelessness Policies
The U.S. Supreme Court’s June decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson to allow enforcement of local ordinances against overnight camping is already spurring new policies to manage homelessness, but the court's ruling does not grant jurisdictions unfettered power, say Kathryn Kafka and Alex Merritt at Sheppard Mullin.
-
Maryland 'Rain Tax' Ruling May Offer Hope For Tax Credits
A Maryland state appellate court's recent decision in Ben Porto v. Montgomery County echoes earlier case law upholding controversial stormwater charges as a valid excise tax, but it also suggests that potential credits to reduce property owners' liability could get broader in scope, says Alyssa Domzal at Ballard Spahr.
-
Decoding CFPB Priorities Amid Ramp-Up In Nonbank Actions
Based on recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enforcement actions and press releases about its supervisory activities, the agency appears poised to continue increasing its scrutiny over nonbank entities — particularly with respect to emerging financial products and services — into next year, say attorneys at Wiley.
-
Shipping Containers As Building Elements Require Diligence
With the shipping container market projected to double between 2020 and 2028, repurposing containers as storage units, office spaces and housing may become more common, but developers must make sure they comply with requirements that can vary by intended use and location, says Steven Otto at Crosbie Gliner.
-
7th Circ. Ruling Expands CFPB Power In Post-Chevron Era
The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Townstone Financial interprets the Equal Credit Opportunity Act broadly, paving the way for increased CFPB enforcement and hinting at how federal courts may approach statutory interpretation in the post-Chevron world, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.
-
Tips For Lenders Offering Texas Home Equity Lines Of Credit
As interest in home equity lines of credit increases, lenders seeking to utilize such products in Texas must be aware of state-specific requirements and limitations that can make it challenging to originate open-end lines of credit on homestead property, says Tye McWhorter at Polunsky Beitel.
-
Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: July Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers cases touching on pre- and post-conviction detainment conditions, communications with class representatives, when the American Pipe tolling doctrine stops applying to modified classes, and more.
-
Expect CFPB To Enforce Warning Against 'Coercive' Fine Print
The recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warning against unenforceable terms "deceptively" slipped into the fine print of contracts will likely be challenged in court, but until then, companies should expect the agency to treat its guidance as law and must carefully scrutinize their consumer contracts, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.